Heidelberg Mall in Gauteng is going completely off-grid with a 3.2 MWp, 3.1 MWh hybrid power project.
Energy Partners (EP) delivered this innovative hybrid project to the Futuregrowth Community Property Fund-owned mall, ensuring a 24/7 uninterrupted power supply, handling loads of up to 2.5MVA, and significantly reducing the mall’s electricity expenses.
The 35,000 sqm Heidelberg Mall features 120 retail stores, restaurants, and services and is located about 50 km southeast of Johannesburg.
EP’s Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) control philosophy and engineering design integrate three power generation sources: the grid (as backup), solar, and diesel.
According to EP, the hybrid system reduces peak demand, increases self-consumption from excess solar generation, saves on diesel, and achieves arbitrage savings (also known as load shifting).
EP Power' Charl du Plessis said the rooftop solar system can fully power the mall during the day, and the BESS ensures autonomy during load shedding and unexpected grid failures with smart load management and diesel generation
The design guarantees zero interruptions during grid failures and protects the entire mall from voltage fluctuations and other grid power quality issues.
This control philosophy integrates with external systems to optimize electricity usage and expenditure, including smart load management of HVAC systems, weather prediction for solar generation forecasting, and load shedding schedule planning.
The system is monitored remotely in real-time via dashboards at EP’s plant monitoring hub in Bellville, Cape Town.
EP’s asset management team also oversees several other energy-using products, such as steam boilers, hybrid generation power plants, and refrigeration systems.
Manie de Waal, EP’s CEO, noted that the project is another step in an already proven partnership with the Future Growth Community Property Fund, which began in 2018.
“Over the past seven years, we’ve successfully implemented more than 13 MWp across 11 properties,” said De Waal.
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